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| 23 Dec 2009 | |
| Davis Cup by BNP Paribas in 2009 |
As a decade of tennis drew to a close at the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas Final in Barcelona, Spain confirmed its position as the dominant force in the men’s game.
Back in March, when the first round ties were being contested around the world, there were 16 nations harbouring hopes of being crowned champion. This included the Spanish team, captained for the first time by Albert Costa.
Spain was attempting to become the first nation since Sweden in 1998 to retain the title. Its previous three wins, coming in 2000, 2004 and 2008, left many people tipping the Spaniards to go all the way for the fourth time in nine years.
Spain overcomes quarterfinal scare, Israel embarks on historic run
Spain began its title defence at home against a Serbian team that included Novak Djokovic. The world No. 3, however, was no match for Rafael Nadal on ‘his’ surface - clay - and Serbia fell to a 4-1 defeat.
Germany, having come through a 3-2 battle against Austria in the first round, was next to make the trip to Spain, specifically to Marbella. This time, Nadal was absent and Costa was forced to make his first major decision.
With the score standing at 2-2, the Spanish captain elected to bring in Juan Carlos Ferrero, a former world No. 1 and Roland Garros champion, for his first Davis Cup appearance in four years. Ferrero did not disappoint, beating Andreas Beck in straight sets to seal Spain’s place in the semifinals.
Israel, meanwhile, was embarking on its best Davis Cup campaign in history, starting with an impressive 3-2 victory over Sweden in the first round. This win, which was achieved in Malmo, was followed by a home tie against Russia in the quarterfinals.
Russia, two-time Davis Cup champion, defeated Romania 4-1 before travelling to Tel Aviv where the result was decided by the end of day two. Harel Levy and Dudi Sela won Friday’s singles rubbers before Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram wrapped up proceedings on Saturday, the score line finished 4-1.
Czech Republic beats former champions, Croatia maintains perfect record
Argentina, runner-up in 2008, opened its campaign with a routine 5-0 victory over Netherlands at home. The win came without the services of David Nalbandian or Juan Martin Del Potro, the country’s top player.
Del Potro returned for the quarterfinal tie against Czech Republic in Ostrava but Nalbandian - so often a talisman for the Argentinean team - was still sidelined through injury. His experience was sorely missed as the Czechs won the deciding rubber to triumph 3-2.
Czech Republic had already overcome France 3-2 in a tricky first round encounter, also in Ostrava. Radek Stepanek and Tomas Berdych were proving a formidable partnership as they played both singles and doubles.
USA, the 2007 champion, and Croatia, the 2005 champion, set up a quarterfinal clash against each other with straight forward first round wins over Switzerland 4-1 and Chile 5-0. Croatia had never previously lost to USA, a statistic that was not about to change as a 3-2 victory was recorded.
With Bob and Mike Bryan, the American doubles team, favourites to win Saturday’s rubber, the first day’s play was always going to be crucial for Croatia. Step up Ivo Karlovic and Marin Cilic, who were in inspirational form – they both came from behind to defeat James Blake and Mardy Fish in five-setters. The result was confirmed as Cilic battled past Blake in the fourth rubber.
Spain wins fourth title
Spain’s home draws continued in the semifinals as Israel travelled to Murcia. Nadal and Fernando Verdasco were both absent but, such is the strength in depth at Costa’s disposal, it had no impact on the result as the Spaniards triumphed 4-1, ending Israel’s fantastic run.
The first day of the semifinal between Czech Republic and Croatia will live long in the memory of anyone in attendance. Stepanek and Karlovic opened the tie and, after nearly six hours on court, the Czech No. 1 clinched a 67 76 76 67 1614 victory. Berdych then recorded a five-set win of his own against Cilic before the two players teamed up to triumph in the decisive doubles. The score ended 4-1 after the ‘dead’ rubbers were split.
The Final was staged at Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, the venue originally built to host the gymnastics event at the 1992 Olympic Games. The significance of this location - particularly to Costa and Ferrero, who were in the side at the time - was that it also hosted the Final in 2000, when Spain won its inaugural title.
Spain welcomed back both Nadal and Verdasco to a team that was unbeaten in 17 home ties. Nadal, drawn to play Berdych in the first rubber, began with a straight sets victory to give his team the early lead. Stepanek then won the opening two sets against Ferrer but could not capitalise, the Spaniard fighting back to claim a memorable victory.
With the score at 2-0, the pressure was firmly on Stepanek and Berdych in the doubles – and it showed. Verdasco partnered Feliciano Lopez to a routine win, giving Spain an unassailable lead. The white wash was completed after Nadal and Ferrer wrapped up the ‘dead’ rubbers.
Spain could be deemed fortunate to have been drawn at home for all its ties in 2009. This allowed the team to play each fixture on clay, a surface on which it was last defeated ten years ago. Spain has proved, however, that switching surfaces is not a problem. In 2008, the Spaniards beat Argentina 3-1 in the Final on a quick indoor hard court. This Spanish side is the best in the world and will be favourite to lift the trophy once again in 2010.
Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group
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